Suzhou Sanegene Bio Inc. (“SanegeneBio”) announced its strategic collaboration with Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., a wholly owned subsidiary of Huadong Medicine Co., Ltd (“Huadong Medicine”, SZ.000963) on November 9, 2023. The collaboration aims to jointly develop siRNA drugs for chronic metabolic diseases based on SanegeneBio’s innovative LEAD™ (Ligand and Enhancer Assisted Delivery) technology platform. Additionally, both companies will explore opportunities to develop new siRNA drugs in other therapeutic areas. Fangda Partners acted as lead counsel for SanegeneBio and provided legal services for this collaboration.

This collaboration leveraged Huadong Medicine’s extensive expertise in pharmaceutical development, clinical trials and commercialization, fully utilizing SanegeneBio’s proprietary small nucleic acid drug platform, LEAD™, to expedite the development of groundbreaking innovative treatment solutions for patients with chronic metabolic diseases.

Small nucleic acid drugs represent a novel category of medications, distinct from traditional small molecules and antibody drugs. These drugs regulate gene and protein expression at a more upstream level, targeting a broader range of RNA as their point of intervention. Small nucleic acid drugs offer multiple advantages, including wide potential targets, broad indications, strong target specificity, long-lasting effects and good safety profiles. In recent years, aside from rare diseases, small nucleic acid drugs also have demonstrated significant therapeutic potential in various chronic disease areas. Addressing substantial unmet clinical needs, both companies will work together to complement each other’s strengths. The strategic collaboration aims to accelerate the development of siRNA drugs for numerous disease areas, providing advance and improved treatment options for a wider range of patients.

SanegeneBio is an emerging RNAi-based company dedicated to developing innovative small nucleic acid drugs based on RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics technology. The company has operations in both the US and China. The leadership team is propelled by a team of industry-leading experts in the field of nucleic acid drugs, with profound experience in development of small nucleic acid drugs and cutting-edge technology. Since its inception, SanegeneBio has successfully established proprietary chemical modification platforms and hepatic and extrahepatic delivery platforms, enabling the fast-growth of research and development of small nucleic acid drugs, which covers a broad range of therapeutic areas including cardiovascular and metabolic diseases, immunology-related diseases, and nervous system diseases.

The Fangda team representing SanegeneBio was led by Life Sciences & Healthcare partners Josh Shin and Henry He .Team members included counsel Irene Wu, and associates Audrey Luo and Essie Zhao. The Fangda team advised on transaction structuring and on preparing and negotiating transaction documents.